Rhododendron "polarnacht"

I've had this compact rhododendron in my garden for maybe three years now. Admittedly, I didn't do my due diligence when I bought it and just planted it without giving it plenty of ericaseous compost around the root ball to give it a good start.

Although it flowers nicely every spring the foliage has taken on that tell tale yellowing, which most rhodedendrons get when they're not happy. My soil is pretty much neutral, so not bad, but maybe not acidic enough for the plant to efficiently take in the iron which it needs to prevent the yellowing leaves.

It's still only half size or so yet, it's full size is only a metre across and a metre tall, so I was thinking of digging it up and putting it in a large planter with some proper soil, rather than try to treat the soil in situ.

I realise once it's in a planter then that's a little more work needed on my part to ensure it doesn't dry out etc. But it would be worth the extra effort to see it with lush dark green foliage in a planter, than the way it is now.

Thoughts?

 

I had similar situation with camelia and blueberries, just surviving. I dug them out. Made large deep holes in soil, filled with acidic compost and pure peat, I dug in plastic barrier as a large circle, about 20 cm deep. Planted back. It made a massive difference, plants started growing, flowering, bluberries were full of berries. I will mulch with acidic compost again. It works better for me than planting in pots.

 

Has it got good drainage though? While rhodos love plenty of moisture, they don't appreciate waterlogging, and I've lost them in the past because of underlying sticky clay in gardens that haven't had any proper cultivation.
Neutral soil isn't a problem in itself. They don't need particularly acidic soil to be happy.

 

The whole back lawn has clay underneath, so drainage is poor. However the rhodedendron is planted in a huge raised bed to the side of the lawn, so drainage is better in that area.

I do know that pots can be challenging and I really like @Alisa idea of digging a bigger hole than I need for the root ball and backfilling it with "proper" soil. I think this may be the way forward.

 

I only grow one rhodo and its not in good nick, but its one of those dwarf ones that were all the rage about 30 yrs ago, its in a bed, with a couple of camelias and they have been know to go yellow on occasions.
I find one watering a year with sequestrene is enough to keep them nice and green, and its not really a hardship.

 

Just to update this thread, and I will also update it in a few months when the rhodedendron has properly settled in.

I dug it completely out of the ground and made the hole I'd taken it from a lot lot bigger. Then I put a load of ericaceous compost in the hole. I put the rhodedendron on top and filled in the sides with more ericaceous compost, and then firmed it all down.

I watered it in with aquarium water with a little bit of rhodedendron feed in it. As you can see from the finished article the leaves, although in good shape, are pale, and not as green as they should be. Hopefully the adding of the ericaceous compost and feed will improve things.